From the pages of In Business magazine.
Early in my senior year in high school, a friend took me to see the movie Animal House (aka National Lampoon’s Animal House). Like everyone else in the theater, I laughed until I cried, filled with silly notions that this must be what college is all about.
I thought about the film recently upon the death of one of the cast members, Stephen Furst, who played the hapless fraternity pledge Kent Dorfman, appropriately nicknamed Flounder. The movie is noted for many comedic lines, none more hysterical than the one directed at Dorfman at the moment of his expulsion. “Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, son.”
It was Dean Wormer’s sweet way of telling him that we’re all responsible for our own game. Lately, however, it’s been harder for everyone to stay ahead of the game due to the unending pace of technological change, especially for people who already were playing catch-up in the skill-building race. We are at the stage where we need to make our workforce more resilient by closing the skills gap, or even closing the body gap, in industries like health care and manufacturing. They don’t lack for willing applicants — there just aren’t enough people with the right skills for open positions.
As our economy continues to change, so do the skills necessary for workers to make themselves marketable to employers. In Wisconsin, two out of every three high school students take part in some form of career and technical education (CTE). That is fortunate because 21% of our high school graduates go directly to the job market after graduation.
A bipartisan measure called the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act recently passed the House of Representatives. Key provisions empower state and local leaders by simplifying the application process for federal funds, provide more flexibility to use federal resources to respond to changing education and economic needs, and improve alignment with “in-demand” jobs through stronger engagement with employers. The Senate should waste no time following suit.
(Continued)
Well-equipped workforces are as important as well-equipped manufacturing plants, and both require modernization. The best way to get there is by updating CTE programs such as apprenticeships and two- or four-year degrees.
Education is not a one-size-fits-all scenario, and a four-year degree is not the path for some. Flounder could have told you all about it.
Click here to sign up for the free IB ezine — your twice-weekly resource for local business news, analysis, voices, and the names you need to know. If you are not already a subscriber to In Business magazine, be sure to sign up for our monthly print edition here.
